{"id":3419,"date":"2026-06-12T08:30:54","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T08:30:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/?page_id=3419"},"modified":"2026-06-12T08:35:21","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T08:35:21","slug":"esg-indexes-vietnam-women-ceo-indexes","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/esg-indexes-vietnam-women-ceo-indexes\/","title":{"rendered":"ESG Indexes: Vietnam Women CEO Indexes"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Always stay ahead of Market & Industry Trends<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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ESG Indexes: Vietnam Women CEO Indexes<\/span><\/h3><\/div>
\n

A New Idea Takes Shape<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

In the early 2010s, Vietnam\u2019s stock market was experiencing rapid growth, but one dimension remained largely unmeasured: the role of female leadership in corporate performance<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

It was within this context that Intelligent Financial Research & Consulting (IFRC)<\/strong> introduced a groundbreaking concept\u2014the Vietnam Women CEO Indexes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Launched in 2013<\/strong>, the index series became the world\u2019s first benchmark tracking publicly listed companies led by female CEOs<\/strong> on Vietnam\u2019s two main exchanges, HOSE and HNX.<\/p>\n

At its core, the idea was both simple and ambitious:<\/p>\n

\n

To transform gender representation into a measurable, investable financial strategy.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

From Observation to Innovation<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The origins of the index can be traced back to a striking observation.<\/p>\n

By the end of 2012, researchers identified just 38 companies\u2014about 5.23% of all listed firms\u2014led by female CEOs<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

While this figure appeared modest, it carried a deeper implication. Compared with global benchmarks at the time, Vietnam\u2019s share of female CEOs was already comparable to or higher than markets like the U.S. S&P 500<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Rather than treating this as a social statistic, IFRC treated it as an investment signal<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The result was the creation of a new index family\u2014one that did not track market size, sectors, or factors, but leadership itself<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

How the Indexes Are Built<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

The Vietnam Women CEO Indexes are structured as a multi-layered index family<\/strong>, designed for both research and investment applications.<\/p>\n

The series includes:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • All-Shares Index<\/strong>\n
      \n
    • Covers all listed companies with female CEOs<\/li>\n
    • Available in both capitalization-weighted and equal-weight formats<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n
    • Top 10 and Top 25 Indexes<\/strong>\n
        \n
      • Focus on the largest and most liquid companies<\/strong><\/li>\n
      • Selected based on free-float market capitalization and liquidity<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        These \u201ctradable\u201d versions are specifically designed to serve as:<\/p>\n

          \n
        • Underlying assets for ETFs<\/li>\n
        • Structured financial products<\/li>\n
        • Portfolio benchmarks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          The methodology follows international standards<\/strong>, combining transparency with systematic rules.<\/p>\n

          In effect, the index transforms an abstract concept\u2014gender diversity\u2014into a quantifiable investment universe<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

          A Rapid Expansion<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

          If the index began with a modest sample, its growth over the following decade tells a different story.<\/p>\n

            \n
          • From 38 companies in 2012<\/strong>,<\/li>\n
          • To approximately 110 companies by January 2024<\/strong>, representing around 15% of listed firms<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            This expansion reflects not only changes in corporate leadership but also Vietnam\u2019s broader social and economic transformation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

            Female leadership, once underrepresented, has become an increasingly visible and influential force in the country\u2019s capital markets.<\/p>\n

            Performance That Defied Expectations<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

            What began as an experimental idea soon gained attention for a different reason\u2014performance<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

            According to IFRC data and market analyses:<\/p>\n

              \n
            • Female CEO-led companies have outperformed traditional benchmarks over time<\/strong><\/li>\n
            • In some cases, returns were significantly higher than the VN-Index<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              A notable example comes from 2017, when:<\/p>\n

                \n
              • The IFRC VNX Top 10 Women CEO Index delivered more than 76% annual performance<\/strong>, ranking among the best-performing indexes in Vietnam that year<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                Although performance varies across market cycles, the broader conclusion remains consistent:<\/p>\n

                \n

                Leadership-driven indexing can generate competitive\u2014and sometimes superior\u2014returns.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

                Understanding the Performance Edge<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

                While the index does not explicitly explain why female-led companies outperform, several patterns emerge from market observations:<\/p>\n

                  \n
                • Strong emphasis on long-term strategy<\/strong><\/li>\n
                • Disciplined financial management<\/li>\n
                • Resilience during economic uncertainty<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                  Research on Vietnamese firms further supports this perspective, showing that female CEOs are positively associated with firm performance indicators<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

                  In this sense, the index captures not just companies\u2014but a distinct leadership style embedded in corporate behavior<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

                  From Vietnam to a Global Concept<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

                  The success of the Vietnam Women CEO Indexes did not remain local.<\/p>\n

                  Vietnam became the testing ground for a broader idea<\/strong>: that leadership-based indexing could be applied globally.<\/p>\n

                  Following its success, IFRC expanded the concept into a global family of Women Leadership Indexes<\/strong>, positioning Vietnam as both:<\/p>\n

                    \n
                  • A pioneer<\/li>\n
                  • And a proof point<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
                    \n

                    The message was clear: gender-focused indexing is not just a social innovation\u2014it is a financial one.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

                    A Broader Market Impact<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

                    Beyond performance, the index has contributed to a larger shift in how investors view markets.<\/p>\n

                    Traditionally, indexes answered a single question:<\/p>\n

                      \n
                    • How is the market performing?<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                      The Women CEO Indexes introduced a new dimension:<\/p>\n

                        \n
                      • Who is leading\u2014and how does leadership affect returns?<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                        This shift aligns with the growing importance of:<\/p>\n

                          \n
                        • ESG investing<\/li>\n
                        • Diversity metrics<\/li>\n
                        • Sustainable finance strategies<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                          In this context, the index serves not only as a benchmark\u2014but as a tool for reshaping investor behavior<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

                          Closing Thought<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

                          The creation of the IFRC Vietnam Women CEO Indexes marks a turning point in index innovation.<\/p>\n

                          It demonstrates that:<\/p>\n

                            \n
                          • Markets are not just collections of companies<\/li>\n
                          • They are reflections of leadership, structure, and decision-making<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                            And in Vietnam\u2019s case, it reveals a compelling insight:<\/p>\n

                            \n

                            That leadership diversity is not only socially meaningful\u2014but financially measurable.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"100-width.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3419","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3419"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3419\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3423,"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3419\/revisions\/3423"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ifrc.vn\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}